Chris Kelly of 90’s hip hop group Kriss Kross has passed

Kriss Kross burst on to the scene in the early 90’s with their hit ‘Jump’ and backwards clothes after signing with hip hop mogul Jermaine Dupri’s So So Def label. The group would go on to become hip hop icons as well as touring with pop icon Michael Jackson.

This past January, Kriss Kross had performed at the So So Def 20th anniversary concert, now hip hop has lost one of its sons, Chris Kelly.

Today, around 7:45 this evening in Atlanta Chris Kelly of the 90’s hip hop duo Kriss Kross was found unresponsive in his home in Atlanta. Around 8pm at Atlanta Medical Center, the rapper was pronounced dead, a cause of death has not been released. A spokeswoman with the Fulton County Police Department has stated that it appears to be a drug overdose but are awaiting confirmation from the medical examiner.

Chris Kelly was 34 years old.

Chris’s mom Donna Kelly Pratte released this statement:

“It is with deep sadness that we announce that our beloved Chris Kelly has passed away on May 1. To millions of fans worldwide, he was the trendsetting, backwards pants-wearing one-half of Kris Kross who loved making music. But to us, he was just Chris – the kind, generous and fun-loving life of the party. Though he was only with us a short time, we feel blessed to have been able to share some incredible moments with him. His legacy will live on through his music, and we will forever love him.”

A few other hip hop artists have expressed their condolences including fellow So So Def artist Da Brat, on twitter and Instagram she posted pictures of Kriss Kross along with captions saying, “Rest In Peace Chris Kelly” and “This is Unreal.”

Big Boi from Outkast also tweeted: “R.I.P. Chris Kelly #KrissKross”

Here’s one more look at the Hip Hop duo’s last performance together back in January at the So So Def anniversary: